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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: lie · wave · kid · perch · wound · cabinet · cold · coach

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. kid — to tease
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. cold — not warm
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. wound — an injury
  10. lie — to recline
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. cold — an illness
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. perch — the fish
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. wound — an injury
  24. perch — for a bird

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com